American Sabor, or Honors 240 B, was my favorite class I took first quarter. The class is about Latin American music, and how that music has influenced music in the United States. I took this class because I play piano, guitar, and bass and I love music. I went in with knowledge of music composition, but no knowledge on Latin American music specifially. My professor, Marisol Berrios-Miranda, was extremely enthusiastic about the subject. Everyone could tell she was super into what she taught. Through this class I learned a lot of history, not all relating to music. Some of it was about the immigration of Latin Americans to the United States (or in the case of some Mexicans, the border crossing over them, making them become U.S. citizens overnight). I learned many genres of music, like cha cha cha, salsa, mambo, boogaloo, and latin rock. I got to listen to artists like Santana, Tito Puente, Lalo Guerrero, and Celia Cruz. Because the class was so engaging and fun, I did really well on the midterm because I was always paying attention in class. We even had interactive activities, like guests who taught us how to dance the fandango, or play the güiro (a percussion instrument typically made of a gourd). One requirement is that we go out and experience Latin American music in the community, and then write about it. For my community project, I took the lightrail to Beacon Hill to attend a Seattle Fandango Project workshop. The Seattle Fandango Project is a project to use Latin American music and dance (especially Mexican) to unite people and provide community. There, members of the Fandango Project taught me and some of my classmates how to play different instruments, including the jarana, a special 8 string guitar. Since I went in December, they also took turns talking about a Christmas tradition in Veracruz, called La Rama. It was a very fun and educational experience for me.